Lakers delete, apologize for 9/11 tweet

The Los Angeles Lakers deleted a 9/11 tweet after receiving unexpected criticism, then later apologized for the perceived misstep in a statement to USA TODAY Sports.

The attached photo in the tweet featured Lakers star Kobe Bryant during the 2001-02 season, with a commemorative ribbon in clear view on his jersey that included an American flag. The hashtag that was widely used to honor the 9/11 victims on the anniversary, #neverforget, was displayed across the picture.

Screen capture, via Twitter.com/Lakers

But when many fans initially saw it as an attempt at humor focusing on the Afro that Bryant wore at the time, the Lakers deleted the tweet and later clarified their intent.

“We apologize to anyone who took this differently than we intended and were therefore offended by it,” Lakers spokesman John Black said in an e-mail. “We used a photo of how we commemorated 9/11 in the 2001-02 season, shortly after the tragedy occurred, because we wanted to show our support of what we felt at that time and continue to feel now. Out of respect for the intensely personal nature of how people remember this day, and that we recognize that not everyone understood the intent of our message, we pulled down our tweet and photo. Ultimately, our intent was to honor the spirit of remembering a day that we should all never forget.”

An old photo of Kobe Bryant wearing a commemorative patch made waves on Twitter.

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